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Taco Stuffed Tomatoes make a perfect, unfussy end-of-summer meal, when the nights are still hot and good tomatoes are plentiful. This easy low-carb recipe comes together in under half an hour, all in one skillet, using ground beef, zesty taco seasoning, and then loaded up with your favorite toppings and salsas.
When there are extra tomatoes coming my way, this is the first recipe I run to. It’s a take on Stuffed Peppers, except the tomatoes stay cold and fresh–no baking required. Each one is filled with spiced ground beef, browned onions, a little bit of rice, and the inside of the hollowed-out tomatoes for an easy, economical dinner that everyone loves.
Recipe ingredients:
Ingredient notes:
- Ground beef: Also delicious with ground turkey or chicken.
- Tomatoes: Only make this recipe with tomatoes that you’d want to eat raw. Leave the bland, pithy, store-bought tomatoes out of it. Those smaller, on-the-vine Campari tomatoes might be good candidates.
- Rice: Any kind of pre-cooked or leftover rice you have: brown rice, leftover Cilantro Lime Rice, long-grain rice, or even quinoa.
- Taco seasoning: I make my own taco seasoning blend to have on hand when the urge for tacos hits unexpectedly, but you can use the little packet from the store, too.
- Toppings: Try scallions, avocado or guacamole, shredded cheese, sour cream, Fritos, or crumbled tortilla chips.
Step-by-step instructions:
- Before you start cooking, hollow out the tomatoes. Using a sharp paring knife, trim out the stem. Then cut a 1/4-inch slice off the top of each tomato to expose the seeds and pulp. Next, carefully cut around the inside perimeter of the tomato, to loosen up the seeds and flesh. Holding the tomato over a bowl, gently scoop out the seeds and extra flesh inside. If there are any large pieces of the fruit that come out, dice them up–some tomatoes are meatier than others! But hold on to the juice, seeds, and hollowed out flesh for cooking the stuffing.
- To make the filling, cook the ground beef and diced onion over high heat in a skillet, breaking up any lumps with a wooden spoon. Drain off any extra fat, if you have it. Then add the tomato sauce, cooked rice (or other grain), taco seasoning, and any reserved tomato bits and juice you have from hollowing the tomatoes. Stir together and cook until the mixture thickens a bit. And finally, season everything to taste with some salt and pepper.
- Remove it from the heat and let cool a minute or two before stuffing the tomatoes. To stuff the tomatoes, work one at a time, carefully filling up each tomato with meat and rice. Form a nice mound on top of each one, if you have enough.
- Serve immediately with all your favorite toppings!
Recipe tips and variations:
- Size matters: Depending on the size and shape of the tomatoes you use, you may have to scale the recipe up to accommodate them and make a double batch. Luckily, that’s easy to do and leftovers are always welcome.
- Make ahead: The filling can be made ahead of time and rewarmed in a skillet or microwave. Stuff the tomatoes right before you plan to eat.
More delicious recipes:
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Taco Stuffed Tomatoes
Taco Stuffed Tomatoes make a perfect, unfussy end-of-summer meal, when the nights are still hot and good tomatoes are plentiful. This easy low-carb recipe comes together in under half an hour, all in one skillet, using ground beef, zesty taco seasoning, and then loaded up with your favorite toppings and salsas.
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef (see note 1)
- ½ medium onion finely chopped
- 8 large tomatoes (see note 2)
- 1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
- ½ cup cooked rice (see note 3)
- 2 tablespoons homemade taco seasoning or 1 packet store-bought (see note 4)
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
- shredded cheddar cheese for serving (see note 5)
- sour cream for serving
- thinly sliced scallions for serving
Instructions
- In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add ground beef and onion. Cook, until browned, breaking up beef with a wooden spoon, about 5 minutes. Drain well.
- Meanwhile, core each tomato to remove the stem. Slice off 1/4-inch of the top of each tomato. Using a sharp paring knife or a small serrated knife, cut around the inside of the tomato to loosen the seeds and inner tomato pieces.
- While holding the tomato over a bowl, use a small spoon to scoop out the seeds and inner tomato flesh. Dice any large inner tomato pieces and reserve, along with the seeds and juice.
- Add tomato sauce, cooked rice, taco seasoning, and any reserved tomato pieces and juice to the skillet. Stir to combine and continue to cook until juices begin to thicken, about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Remove skillet from heat and cool filling slightly. Working with one tomato at a time, spoon beef filling into a tomato and mound carefully on top. Repeat with remaining tomatoes.
- Serve with shredded cheese, sour cream, scallions, and all your favorite toppings.
Notes
- Ground beef: Also delicious with ground turkey or chicken.
- Tomatoes: Only make this recipe with tomatoes that you'd want to eat raw. Leave the bland, pithy, store-bought tomatoes out of it. Those smaller, on-the-vine Campari tomatoes might be good candidates.
- Rice: Any kind of pre-cooked or leftover rice you have: brown rice, leftover Cilantro Lime Rice, long-grain rice, or even quinoa.
- Taco seasoning: I make my own taco seasoning blend to have on hand when the urge for tacos hits unexpectedly, but you can use the little packet from the store, too.
- Toppings: Try scallions, avocado or guacamole, shredded cheese, sour cream, Fritos, or crumbled tortilla chips.
- Size matters: Depending on the size and shape of the tomatoes you use, you may have to scale the recipe up to accommodate them and make a double batch. Luckily, that's easy to do and leftovers are always welcome.
- Make ahead: The filling can be made ahead of time and rewarmed in a skillet or microwave. Stuff the tomatoes right before you plan to eat.
Nutrition
Calories: 194kcalCarbohydrates: 11gProtein: 12gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 4gCholesterol: 40mgSodium: 99mgPotassium: 594mgFiber: 2gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 1575IUVitamin C: 26mgCalcium: 30mgIron: 2mg
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Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
The Taco Stuffed Tomatoes is helping me with my assessment at school and they are sooo good!
So happy to help Zake, thanks! – Meggan
These are superb! My kids love them and so do I!! Gonna make for a third time this weekend. We use ground turkey and it’s just as good. Thank you!
I just love these. So easy and so much healthier than tortillas.